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Planning commission backs lowering minimum lot size for agritourism overlay from 5 acres to 1 acre
Summary
Commissioners voted unanimously to recommend a municipal-code change allowing the agritourism overlay to apply to parcels as small as 1 acre citywide; staff and neighbors said site‑specific review will still be required for any rezone.
The Provo City Planning Commission voted Feb. 12 to recommend that City Council amend the municipal code to reduce the minimum lot size for the agritourism overlay from five acres to one acre.
Dustin Wright, senior planner, told the commission the change would not automatically rezone properties; it would allow owners of agriculturally zoned parcels as small as one acre to apply for the overlay. Any applicant would still need to submit a site‑specific rezoning application that comes to the Planning Commission and City Council for approval.
Brooke Barnes, Lakewood neighborhood district chair, told commissioners she polled neighbors and found broad support in her district for agritourism uses that help preserve open land, while some respondents worried that a one‑acre minimum could place commercial activity very close to existing homes.
Commissioners debated the proper citywide minimum. Several members said they favored flexibility to support small, seasonal operations — for example, a small pumpkin patch or community farm stand — but flagged the need for careful review because the change would apply citywide. Staff noted the overlay limits commercial activity: the overlay adds a small set of permitted commercial uses (commercial tours, educational classes, small museums and event halls) and caps the portion of a parcel that can be used for agritourism activity.
After discussion the commission voted unanimously to forward a recommendation to City Council in favor of reducing the minimum lot size to one acre.
What’s next If City Council adopts the code change, any landowner seeking the agritourism overlay will still need to file a rezoning application and go through site‑specific review and public hearings.
